http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.a ... E_ID=45684

Denver plan for Spanish libraries hammered
Proposal calls for 7 branches to make non-English material dominant
Posted: August 10, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

A plan by the city of Denver's library system to make some branches specifically cater to Spanish-language speakers has some residents and English-only advocates seeing red.

The plan, called "Languages and Learning," would dramatically increase the amount of Spanish resources in seven branches to serve Denver's burgeoning Latino immigrant community.

The proposal has been roundly criticized by those who oppose public services to illegal aliens and support making English the nation's official language.

Mauro E. Mujica is chairman of the board of U.S. English, Inc.

"Denver's action is a dubious first in American history: A major U.S. city is creating a public institution that intentionally excludes native-born Americans," said Mujica in a statement. "This action goes against the model of assimilation that has successfully served the United States for centuries.

"In a nation of immigrants, focusing on a single non-English language is the type of favoritism that we should have abandoned years ago. The taxpayers of Denver – residents who speak 68 languages – should not stand idly by while their money goes to support immigrants from El Salvador or Colombia over immigrants from Vietnam or Egypt."

Area residents also have criticized the plan.

"This is America. Our language is English. It's important that our public institutions adhere to a single language," Fred Elbel, a Lakewood resident and president of Colorado Alliance for Immigration Reform, told the Rocky Mountain News.

Leading anti-illegal immigration lawmaker Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., has spoken in opposition to the idea, saying such a change could result in "ethnic separatism."

Head librarian Rick Ashton defended the proposal.

"Our mission is simple: to help the people of our community realize their full potential," Ashton told the local paper. "It is one of our responsibilities and traditions to serve as a resource for immigrants in their efforts to become members of our local community."

Countered Mujica: "I fail to see how an official Spanish library will aid immigrants in learning English and becoming Americans. If anything, it will further the notion that Spanish-speaking immigrants can live in relative comfort without needing to learn our common language. If we are to successfully continue as a nation of immigrants, we cannot send an 'English optional' message to any immigrant group."

Local data show children from Hispanic families account for more than half of all students in Denver Public Schools, while 21 percent of Hispanic household in the city speak Spanish at home.

The Language and Learning plan will be reviewed next month by the Library Commission and a 50-member advisory board.

The controversy isn't the only Spanish-language issue facing the city's library system. Monday, protesters demonstrated at the central branch against the library's carrying of Spanish "fotonovellas," story books that include, in some cases, adult oriented images that detractors say amount to publicly financed pornography.